1. The Commission has received information alleging
detention and prison conditions which violate human rights in Brazilian jails and the
resultant situation of constant rebellion, to which government agents in many cases react
heedlessly, with excessive violence and a lack of control.

2. The Federal Constitution and Brazilian laws contain
progressive measures that respect the rights and treatment which the prisoners should be
given and that indicate the way their sentences should be carried out.(1) The National Council on Criminal and Penal
Matters, an organ under the Federal Ministry of Justice, dictates the policies and
directives on the prevention of crime; administration of criminal justice; serving of
sentences; security measures; and drafting of the national penitentiary program.(2) The administration of penal centers is the
responsibility of the Executive Branch in each of the Federated States, through the
Secretariats of Justice and Public Safety. External supervision of the penitentiary system
is the responsibility of the Judiciary in each State.(3)

3. An official census conducted in 1994 showed that 175 of
the 297 penal establishments in Brazil are in very poor condition and 32 are undergoing
construction. The prison population consists of close to 130,000 inmates, 96.31 of whom
are men and 3.69% are women; 51% of the prisoners have been convicted of theft or robbery;
17% for homicide; 10% for drug trafficking; and the remainder for other offenses.(4) It is important to note that 95% of the
convicts are indigent and 97% are illiterate or semi-illiterate. The rate of recidivism in
the penal population is 85%, which shows that the prisons are not performing their duty to
rehabilitate the inmates.

4. As a result of information received during its in
situ visit, and other information, the Commission finds that the major problems facing
Brazil's penal system include as follows.

5. The capacity of Brazil's prison system is officially
estimated at 51,639. In other words, out of a universe of 130,000 inmates, there is a
shortfall of about 75,000, or close to 2.5 prisoners for each place.(5) According to these official figures, at
least 150 new prisons will have to be built to offset that shortfall. Other sources
suggest that the numerical situation is far more serious, indicating that the prisons are
housing between five and six times more inmates than they are actually designed to hold.(6) &(7)

6. This lack of space, overcrowding and overpopulation was
noted by the Commission when it visited the Carandiru House of Detention(8) in the Third Police District
("Delegation") in the City of Sao Paulo, where a police official of that center
stated that it was a real "depository of prisoners." The Commission saw that in
a space of about three by four meters (12 m2), designed to house six prisoners, almost
twenty people ate and slept there, without beds or any minimal comfort, frequently sitting
or standing up for lack of space.(9) The
Commission walked into the central patio: it was an awesome sight, filled with prisoners
who stood there, filling almost every centimeter of the area. Such was the lack of space
that in order for the members of the Commission to move about and talk with them, the
prisoners themselves had to push through the crowd to open a pathway. The Commission was
told that the patio itself housed many of them, who slept piled up together--sitting,
standing, exposed to rain and inclement weather. Some of the prisoners showed the sores on
their legs, produced by sleeping on the floor.

7. A factor that particularly concerned the Commission (and
was corroborated by the prison census) is that the lack of space is so great that 48% of
those convicted serve out their sentences in facilities of a provisional nature--for
example, in the jails at police headquarters. This means that all too frequently, people
who are simply being detained, booked and/or arrested for the first time mingle with those
who have been sentenced for serious crimes. That, as will be seen further on, is a
violation of international standards and a source of serious injuries for some categories
of prisoners.

8. The present Government is aware of the problem of
overcrowding in prisons and this is reflected in its National Human Rights Program to deal
with the overcrowding in prisons. The short-term aim is: i) to create new facilities and
increase the number of places, using money from the National Penitentiary Fund to do so;
2) to propose legislation that will introduce sentences consisting of alternatives to
prison for nonviolent crimes; and, in the medium term, 3) to encourage a streamlining of
judicial procedures in order to reduce the number of detainees awaiting sentence.

9. In the case of Carandiru, the Government informed the
Commission about the agreement between the federal government and the state of Sao Paulo
to decommission the Carandiru Penitentiary Complex. Nine new prisons will be built within
a short time; six will be medium security units and one will be a detention center for
prisoners who have not received their final sentence (each unit will have a capacity of
600 prisoners). The second phase of the plan calls for building 25 more prisons, each
holding 600 persons.

10. According to the government, these new prisons will
take care of the space problem. They will also create a better environment for returning
the prisoners to society. In Sao Paulo, where the problem is worst, the state government
is already taking other steps to keep overcrowding and riots from leading to a
repetition of incidents such as the one at Carandiru where 111 prisoners died during the
police action. In recent prison riots, the willingness of the government to act with
rigor, while respecting human rights at the the same time, averted deaths in situations as
complicated or more complicated than Carandiru. This outcome was thanks to measures to
control the use of force. The authority responsible for giving the order to enter the
prisons and put down the riots always heads the force. Only graduate officers carry
firearms. Surrenders are common because guarantees are given that there will be no
reprisals or torture. The shock troops are better trained.

11. To reduce the pressure on Brazil=s prison system and
bring about faster return of inmates to society, the federal executive has sent a draft
bill to the National Congress extending the application of alternative sentences to
deprivation of liberty. The objective is to reach above all those individduals who have
committed crimes against public property, and to have these persons restore what was
destroyed or to repay public money that they had taken improperly. Right now the
alternative sentences are applied only to those who are sentenced to up to one year in
prison. If the new bill passes, however, this benefit will be extended to those who have
been given up to five years.

12. The Commission had the opportunity in July of 1997 to
visit two of Brazil's penal system establishments which are examples of a serious and
scientific effort to develop new models to treat and rehabilitate prisoners.

One of these was the Papuda Penitentiary Center, located in
the federal district of Brasilia, where, besides acceptable compliance with international
treatment standards, there are re-entry programs based on productive labor both in and
outside the prison for an large segment of the inmate population. The Commission was also
able to see other initiatives (painting workshops, theater, apprenticeships, library) that
are helpful in reaching the objective of rehabilitation which should be the norm for all
penal facilities.

The other establishment visited that should be mentioned is
the Penal Hospital of Niteroi, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, which is part of the Office
of the Secretary of Justice and Interior of that state. The Penal Hospital carries out a
systematic plan of curative and preventive medical care for the inmates of that
jurisdiction with its modern resources and through the development of experimental
initiatives that hold great potential.

13. The Commission was able to observe the substandard
hygienic conditions of prison life and the lack of adequate medical and psychological
treatment for the convicts. According to statements from the prisoners themselves, in the
event of a fight or illness, it is they who must take care of the wounded or sick.(11) During its visit to the Women's
Penitentiary in Sao Paulo, the Commission heard the prisoners' complaints about the lack
of medical care, especially in the areas of gynecology and dentistry, as well as the lack
of vehicles to transport the patients to the doctor or hospital. The collective bathrooms
here were inadequate and unhygienic.

14. Similarly, the Commission had occasion to visit a ward
of AIDS patients. They lay on their cots, virtually abandoned and with a lack of hygiene.
This serious disease is particularly prevalent among prisoners in the large urban centers,
and roughly 25% of the prisoners at the police centers and public jails carry the HIV
virus. When the patients reach the terminal stage of AIDS, it is difficult to find persons
to help them or take them to hospitals.(12)

15. In the Commission's visit to the Prison of Carandiru
and to the 3rd Police District, many prisoners complained that gastric, urological,
dermatitis, pneumonia and ulcerous ailments were not adequately treated, informing that
many times there were not even available the basic remedies to treat them.

16. The Commission received complaints that when the ailing
prisoners need to be taken to care facilities or hospitals to receive a particular type of
medical or emergency treatment, the military police corps (the agency responsible for
escorting or transporting the prisoners to hospitals) at times refused to do so or delayed
its escort services with no justification whatsoever--which very often resulted in
worsening of the patient's condition.(13)

17. There were numerous complaints from prisoners at the
different penal centers visited by the Commission that the amount of food they received
was inadequate; that they suffered from the lack of heating facilities; that when it
rained, they got wet, and since the only clothes they had were the ones they had on, they
were forced to continue wearing wet garments day after day.

they had to wear wet clothing.

18. At the same time, we were told that the inmates who had
money could obtain extra food and clothing. The Commission is struck, in particular, by
the findings of studies (which coincide with the testimony it received) to the effect that
food is often sidetracked in the prisons, which results in an increase of violence(15), with the tragic consequences documented
in this chapter.

19. Almost without exception, the visiting members of the
Commission received complaints from the prisoners about the length of time needed to
process their requests for the benefits to which the law entitles them and the complexity
of the legal proceedings required to obtain those benefits, a process that is still more
aggravated by the lack of adequate legal assistance.(17)
Those legal benefits include the transfer to open or semi-open facilities; the reduction
or remission of a sentence (one day thereof is knocked off for every three days of work
performed); and release of convicts when they have served the time set in their respective
sentences.

20. As told by the prisoners with whom the Commission met,
80% of the inmates have already served one-sixth of their sentence and are therefore
entitled to be transferred to a semi-open system, and 50% of them have served enough time
to be eligible for transfer to an open system. But because the procedures are so lengthy
and complicated, they are obliged to remain in the closed system. It was also said that at
least 50% of the prisoners in Rio de Janeiro could be given conditional freedom, but have
not been able to obtain this benefit due to the lack of lawyers to handle the processing
required.(18)

21. The Commission received complaints from prisoners who
said that it was practically impossible to have any intimacy with their spouses or members
of their families when they were visiting. They also reported that the prison officials
often collected money from the family members before allowing the visits to take place.

22. One of the functions which the serving of a sentence
should perform is rehabilitation of the individual, so that he may insofar as possible
obtain a harmonious reinsertion into society. Productive work in a penitentiary is
considered to be an indispensable method for accomplishing that objective.(23)

23. However, many of the prisoners interviewed by the
Commission complained of having no work in the prisons, saying that they spent the whole
day sleeping or walking from one side to the other.(24)
In this regard, the Prison Census states that 89% of the inmates do not perform any work,
whether pedagogical or productive, and this is one of the most decisive causes of tensions
and revolts in prisons. It should be noted that most of the detainees performed productive
work before being put in prison.(25)

24. The fact that Brazil's prison population is
significantly young, with 68% of the inmates less than 25 years of age, makes it all the
more necessary to carry out effective rehabilitation policies for the inmates along with
the possibility of work, inasmuch as this represents a group of people who could have a
productive life in the future.

25. The Commission also received complaints from the
inmates who complained about the lack of recreation--a situation which also tends to
increase the existing climate of violence (cf. the Rebellions and Killings in Penal
Centers).

26. The Commission was also able to verify--from statements
by the prisoners that were confirmed by prison officials--that many of the penal centers
fail to divide the inmates in accordance with the nature of the offense or by age. On the
contrary, the inmates at many facilities designed for temporary detention live side by
side with those sentenced for various reasons (first-time offenders and recidivists):
minors and adults held in preventive imprisonment, those caught in flagrante delicto,
and suspects in temporary custody subject to investigation.(27)

27. One of the principal reasons for finding it necessary
to separate prisoners into categories is, among other factors, to prevent prisoners with a
criminal record of exerting harmful influence on first-time delinquents or those
undergoing investigation, to facilitate social readaptation and to ensure the physical
safety of the detainees. The Commission was told, both by prison personnel and by the
prisoners, that the jails were being turned into veritable schools for crime, where the
experienced inmates taught the younger ones how to carry out different unlawful acts and
established ties and dependencies geared to crime in a world of unlawful conduct from
which escape is difficult, and which the prison system in fact fosters.

28. The Commission was also able to note the continued
existence of isolation cells ("celas fortes") to which, according to the
information, prisoners who have committed disciplinary faults are sent following a summary
proceeding. They are kept there for up to thirty days and during that time--according to
the prisoners' statements--they are subject to further punishments.

29. In the performance of their duties, prison staff are
supposed to respect and protect human dignity, and to maintain and defend the human rights
of all persons.(28) The Commission received
testimony that members of the prison staff very often mete out inhumane, cruel and
despotic treatment to the inmates, which can take the form of torture.(29) This is due primarily to the lack of
adequate special training of the prison staff in regard to human rights and the treatment
to be given the prisoners; the shortage of, and low wages paid to, the personnel; and the
lack of proper supervision and control, with the consequent impunity.(30)

30. Brazil's prison system lacks sufficient staff.
According to the figures cited in the prison census, the ratio is eleven prisoners to each
staff member--far from the number recommended by the United Nations, which is three to
one.

31. The Commission is encouraged by the plans of the
Brazilian Government to upgrade the training of prison personnel(31) and notes this will be carried out as part
of a broader project including recruitment and training, plus the improvement of working
conditions for the such staff.

32. Prison officials informed the Commission that one of
the principal problems plaguing the system is the lack of a suitable budgetary allocation
for the prison system, which keeps the service quality low. In 1992, for example, the
Department of Prison Affairs asked the federal budget authorities for the sum of
US$22,743,000. The allocation approved by the National Congress was US$5,091,000--and only
US$1,873,650 of that amount was actually disbursed.(32)

33. An average of two revolts and three escapes occur every
day in Brazil's penal centers.(33) The
causes of such situations are very varied. The prisoners claim that they consist of the
physical conditions; the food; the lack of legal, medical and religious assistance;
overpopulation; minimal conditions of treatment; violence on the part of the jailers; and
the inefficacy of the control and complaint organs. Some of the prison staff, for their
part, suggest that the revolts are used to cover prisoners' attempts at a mass escape.

34. Prison rebellions have on many occasions had tragic
consequences, costing the lives of many prisoners and guards. When the prison authorities
have decided not to negotiate with the rebels and choose to quell the riots with violence,
both guards and inmates have died; but when the authorities negotiate, the death toll is
lower. One study has compared a sample of rebellions with the results produced by
following different strategies. It found that in the 11 revolts that occurred between
September of 1986 and April of 1988, there were no deaths in the six cases where
negotiation was used. By contrast, the five cases where there was no negotiation and
violence was used against the rebels, resulted in 47 deaths of both guards and prisoners.(34)

35. A slaughter took place on October 2, 1992 at the
Carandiru House of Detention in the city of Sao Paulo. The judicial investigation showed
that the military police opened fire on naked and defenseless prisoners in the prison's
Eight Ward. That act of violence resulted in the death of 111 prisoners, riddled with
bullet holes from the shots of the military police in question.(35)

36. Given the large number of people who have died inside
prison walls due to the irrational and indiscriminate use of force, the Commission wishes
to point out that the use of force by prison personnel should be permitted only in
exceptional cases, subject to the criteria of being found reasonably necessary--depending
on the circumstances--to prevent crime, and in due proportion to those circumstances.(36) Negotiation should be the instrument of
choice and customary use, and to that end the staff should be trained in appropriate
techniques by specialists. The use of firearms is considered to be an extreme measure, so
that every possible step must be taken to avoid that recourse. In general, firearms should
not be used at all, except when the presumed offender offers armed resistance or in any
way endangers the lives of other persons, and the presumed offender cannot be fended off
or detained by applying less extreme measures.

37. The purpose of depriving persons of liberty, among
others, is to separate dangerous individuals from society to protect it from crime, and
the reform and social readaptation of the persons sentenced. To this end, the prison
system must use every curative, educational, moral, spiritual or other means and every
form of assistance available to it to reduce as much as possible the conditions which
weaken the prisoner's sense of responsibility, the respect for the dignity of his person
and his capacity for social rehabilitation.

38. The analysis which we have conducted on prison reality
in Brazil shows that in many prisons the inmates are being held in unsatisfactory
conditions, which could be a violation of the American Convention on Human Rights and
other international instruments on those rights. Most of the inmates in Brazil are to all
intents and purposes mistreated and unprotected, and any effective rehabilitation and
readaptation is quite unlikely, given the conditions in the prisons and the prison
personnel in charge.

39. In the face of this reality, the Commission considers
the measures which the Government of Brazil plans to carry out in the short, medium and
long terms, as noted in the National Human Rights Program, to be indispensable; to require
all of the political, technical and financial energy necessary; and to be mustered with
the utmost priority.

40. The Commission in order to stimulate the Government of
Brazil to carry out their prison program recommends:

Application of prison measures

That adequate measures be adopted to improve the situation
of its penitentiary system and the treatment which the prisoners receive in order to
comply fully with the provisions set forth in its Constitution and laws and the
international treaties to which Brazil is a party. In this respect, it is recommended that
the UN Minimum Standards for Treatment of Detainees be effectively applied as guidelines.

Physical conditions in prisons

That the capacity and number of places in the prison system
be increased substantially in order to remedy the serious current problem of
overpopulation; and, at the same time, that the conditions of physical soundness, sanitary
facilities and workshops and recreation be established in accordance with international
standards.

Hygiene and health care

That conditions of hygiene and health care be improved in
prison establishments, police headquarters and jails, and that the detainees and
prisoners, with no exception, be promptly and effectively given the necessary medical care
they need and that whenever required, they be transported to assistance centers without
any delay whatsoever. That the necessary services for AIDS patients and HIV carriers be
established, and that all discrimination inappropriate to their condition be prohibited.

Food and clothing

That the prisoners be provided with adequate food and a
balanced diet containing the required calorie content. That measures be taken to avoid any
diversion of the food supply which unlawfully favors certain prisoners and/or which is the
result of administrative corruption.

Legal assistance

That all necessary measures be taken to provide real and
effective legal assistance at no cost for those who need it and cannot pay for it
throughout all stages of the judicial process.

That the benefits and privileges to which the prisoners are
entitled pursuant to the law be recognized and granted, promptly and effectively, in
particular as regards the remission of sentences, pardons, family visits, and the like.

That the judicial processes which keep unsentenced
prisoners in jail be accelerated, and that they be released if they have complied with the
legally authorized maximum.

That standards relative to alternative serving of sentences
be effectively embodied in the law

Rehabilitation and separation of prisoners by
category

That the persons held in preventive prison be separated
from those sentenced, and that the latter be separated according to the type and gravity
of the offense and the age of the prisoners.

That the prisoners be given opportunities to work, as well
as educational, rehabilitation-oriented and recreational programs that will help in their
rehabilitation and reinsertion into society.

Disciplinary measures

That the isolation cells or "celas fortes," when
they violate international standards, be eliminated, and that effective and timely means
of internal control be established in the prison system in order to punish members of the
prison staff who are responsible for abuses and acts of violence against the prisoners.

Prison agents

That suitable training and specialization programs be set
up for the agents responsible for the security, administration and surveillance of
prisons, and that

the ratio of prison personnel to the prisoners be raised to
meet to comply with international standards.

Allocation of resources

That the federal and state prison system be given the
necessary monetary and material resources to carry out all of the plans and meet the goals
set by the National Human Rights Program; and that they suffice to conform to the minimum
conditions and security required pursuant to the pertinent international instruments.

Coping with situations of violence

That policies, strategies, techniques and suitable
personnel for avoiding and resolving situations of violence among the prisoners be
introduced.

Every person is equal before the law, without distinction
of any kind; Brazilians and resident foreigners are guaranteed the inviolability of the
right to life, liberty, equality, security and property in the following terms:

XLI. The law shall punish any discrimination that
violates basic rights and liberties.

XLVI. The law shall regulate and individualize
penalties and shall adopt the following measures, among others: (...)

XLVIII. Sentences shall be served in different
establishments, based on the nature of the crime, and the age and sex of the convict.

XLIX. Prisoners' physical and moral integrity shall be
respected.

Law 7210-84 on the execution of sentences deals at length
with the treatment of prisoners, indicating among other items that they shall be given
material assistance in regard to health care; education; legal, social and religious
matters while serving the sentence and at the time they are released.

7. The situation is further aggravated
by the fact that the prison population has been increasing considerably. In the State of
Sao Paulo, the number of prisoners has grown by more than 75% in recent years. Idem, page
7.

The lack of space is even more alarming when we consider
that 345,000 of the prison sentences issued by the judicial authorities have not even been
served. If they are to be carried out, the size of the prison system will have to be
expanded to at least four times its present capacity.

8. Carandiru is the prison with the
largest number of inmates in Latin America. Under the terms laid down in its National
Human Rights Program, the Government of Brazil plans to deactivate the facility.

9. In Brazil, the usual practice is that
the number of prisoners be twice that of the cement beds ("stones") in the jails
of the police districts. All too often, the number can be three times that many. As a
result, the prisoners have to take turns sleeping, or sleep on the floor. In the oldest
police districts, the facilities don't even have cement beds in the cells and all of the
prisoners have to sleep on the floor. National Conference of Bishops of Brazil, National
Coordination of the Pastoral Prison Facilities. How to Create Pastoral Prison Facilities,
1995, page 22.

The United Nations Minimum Rules for the Treatment of
Convicts in this respect call for 9.1. The cells or rooms for nocturnal isolation must not
be occupied by more than one prisoner. If for special reasons--such as a temporary excess
of prison population--the central penitentiary administration should find it indispensable
to make any exceptions to this rule, the placement of two convicts in each cell or
individual room must be avoided." The Commission walked into the central patio: an
awesome sight. The prisoners standing there, dirty and half-naked, occupied practically
every last centimeter of the area. It was so crowded that in order for the members of the
Commission to move around and talk to them, the prisoners had to make an opening between
the ranks. The Commission was told that the patio served as housing for many of them, who
sleep.

10. On this point, the United Nation's
Minimum Rules for Treatment of Inmates stipulates:

15. Inmates shall be required to have good personal
hygiene and to that end, they shall have available to them all the water and personal
hygiene articles necessary for health and cleanliness.

22.1) Every penal facility shall have the services of
at least one qualified physician who shall have some knowledge of psychiatry [...]. 2)
sick persons whose condition requires special care must be transferred to specialized
penal facilities or to civil hospitals [...]. 3) every inmate shall have available to him
the services of a qualified dentist.

23.1) Facilities for women inmates must have special
installations for the treatment of pregnant inmates [...].

11. The Pastoral Carcelaria notes in
this context that illness in prison is hazardous, for only a very few prisons provide
adequate medical care. At the same time, public hospitals are loath to attend sick
prisoners on the premise that such cases occupy the beds needed for honest and
hard-working citizens. As a rule, no medication is available, even for a simple headache.
Op. cit. 9 at 21.

13. Prisoners with minor
ophthalmological problems had apparently gone blind because they were never taken to the
public hospital. At times, a simple infection of a toe ended up with amputation of half
the leg because the military police (MP) escort did not come or arrived too late for the
patient to arrive for the hospital appointment. "The worst of it is that no one has
power over the MP, which does what it wants to do." Idem Op. Cit. 9, page 87.

14. The United Nations Minimum Rules
for Treatment of Inmates points out in this connection: "20.1) Every inmate shall
receive from the administration, at normal hours, high quality food that is well prepared
and served, whose nutritional value is sufficient for maintenance of his health and
strength. 2) Every inmate shall be able to drink potable water whenever he needs it."
17.1) Every inmate who is not permitted to wear his own clothing shall receive clothing
appropriate to the climate and sufficient to keep him in good health [...]."

"Every person accused of a criminal offense has
the right to be presumed innocent so long as his guilt has not been proven according to
law. During the proceedings, every person is entitled, with full equality, to the
following minimum guarantees."

Subparagraph (e) thereof cites: "the inalienable
right to be assisted by counsel provided by the state, paid or not as the domestic law
provides, if the accused does not defend himself personally or engage his own counsel
within the time period established by law."

In addition, Article 25 of the Convention notes that
"Everyone has the right to simple and prompt recourse, or any other effective
recourse, to a competent court or tribunal for protection against acts that violate his
fundamental rights recognized by the constitution or laws of the state concerned or by
this Convention.

17. Most of the prisoners require legal
assistance to recover their freedom and to obtain the legal benefits to which they are
entitled. Given the indigent status of the great majority of the inmates, such assistance
must be free of charge and comprehensive, as guaranteed by the Constitution. The
information given to the Commission, which appears to be corroborated by other sources is
that, to the contrary, the State appoints a few lawyers to meet the legal needs of all of
the prisons and 'lock-ups.'" Op. cit. 9 pages 20-21.

18. These findings are confirmed by the
end of the Final Report on the Brazilian Penitentiary System prepared by Brazil's Chamber
of Deputies, which states that the time served by more than 50% of the prisoners does not
correspond to the sentences imposed. Op. cit. 6 page 92.

19. The UN Minimum Rules for Treatment
of Inmates points out the following in this connection: "79. Special care shall be
taken for maintaining and improving relationships between the inmate and his family, when
such relationships are advisable for both parties."

20. The UN Minimum Rules for
Treatment of Inmates points out: "65. The treatment of sentenced persons [...] should
have the purpose [...] of instilling in them the will to live in accordance with law, to
live off the earnings of their labor, and to develop in them the ability to do so. Such
treatment is designed to promote self-respect in these persons and to develop a sense of
responsibility." "77.1) Provisions shall be taken to improve the instruction of
all inmates who are capable of taking advantage of it, including religious instruction in
countries where this is possible, and instruction of the illiterate, and instruction of
young inmates shall be obligatory, and the administration shall provide particular
attention to this."

21. The UN Minimum Rules for Treatment
of Inmates points out: "71.1) Penitentiary labor shall not be punitive in nature. 3)
Inmates shall be given a productive job that is sufficient to occupy them during the
normal duration of a workday. 4) To the extent possible, this job should contribute, by
its nature, to maintaining or enhancing the ability of the inmate to earn an honest living
after his release. 5) Instruction shall be given in some useful trade to those inmates who
are able to take advantage of it, young persons in particular [...]."

22. The UN Minimum Rules for the
Treatment of Inmates points out: A78. For the physical and mental welfare of inmates
recreational and cultural activities will be organized at all sites.@

23. Article 5.6 of the American
Convention states in this respect that "Punishments consisting of deprivation of
liberty shall have as an essential aim the reform and social readaptation of the
prisoners.@

24. According to a study, 80% of the
prisoners are marijuana users. (Quote the Chamber of Deputies' report.) Op. cit. 6 pg. 28.

25. For a study conducted on the
profile of prisoners, Dr. Vinicius Caldeira Brant interviewed a representative sample of
Sao Paulo's prison population. He concluded that most of the inmates were employed at the
time of their arrest, and only 1% of those interviewed had never had a job. Idem pg. 26.

26. The United Nations Minimum Rules
for Treatment of Inmates points out: 8. Inmates that fall in different categories shall be
lodged in different facilities or in separate sections within the facilities, subdivided
by sex and age, background, reasons for imprisonment and the treatment that is to be given
to them. In other words, a) men and women shall be confined, wherever possible, in
different facilities. Any facility that takes both men and women shall have a completely
separate section for women; b) persons held on preventive detention shall be kept separate
from those who are serving sentences; c) persons held prisoner for debts and others
sentenced to some time of imprisonment for civil reasons shall be kept separate from those
imprisoned for criminal offenses; d) young inmates shall be kept separate from adults.

27. Article 5.4 of the American
Convention states that "Accused persons shall, save in exceptional circumstances, be
segregated from convicted persons and shall be subject to separate treatment appropriate
to their status as unconvicted persons."

28. Article 2 of the Code of Conduct
for Personnel Responsible for Seeing that the Law is Obeyed.

29. According to the report from the
Conference of Brazilian Bishops, the prisoners are beaten, slapped, insulted, subjected to
electric shocks and the "Polish corridor" treatment as a routine affair in many
prisons and police headquarters. The jailers, guards, members of the police force and
prison directors often commit abuses, shielded in impunity. Corruption is also present,
and at times an entrance fee is collected from visiting family members by "laying
hand on what the family is bringing to the prisoner." Op. cit. 9 page 21.

30. Article 5 of the American
Convention says that: "1. Every person has the right to have his physical, mental and
moral integrity respected." and "2. No one shall be subjected to torture or to
cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment or treatment. All persons deprived of their
liberty shall be treated with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person."

34. Pastoral Carceraria of the
Archdiocese of Sao Paulo, "Elements for a reflection in the search for answers to
the question of rebellions and hostages 1986-1988," May 1998, page 5.

35. Since the case of the Carandiru
massacre (No. 11,219) is now being processed by the Commission, any reference to it is
merely descriptive and does not imply a prejudgment on the substance of the matter, which
is the subject of a study currently in progress by the Commission.

For more information on this case, see AMERICAS WATCH,
"Brazil: Prison Massacre in Sao Paulo," October 21, 1992; AMNESTY
INTERNATIONAL, "Brazil: Death Has Arrived: Prison Massacre at Casa de Detencao,
Sao Paulo," August 1993.

36. Article 3 of the Code of Conduct
for Personnel Responsible for Ensuring Compliance with the Law states that: "The
personnel responsible for seeing to observance of the law may use force only when it is
strictly necessary and to the extent needed to perform their duties."